This is a record of my journey as a Muslim. I used to be Catholic and belonged to a missionary organisation. After my conversion, I sat on the board of a Muslim converts' organisation and specialised in da'wah programmes, convert management, interfaith issues and apostasy cases. I am an initiate of a Sufi order. As such, the articles and writings tend to cover these areas.
All the Arabic and graphics could not have been done without the help of my wife, Zafirah.

Wednesday, 23 December 2009

What Have We Learnt in Creation?

بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ
ٱلرَّحِيمِ

The
following is adapted from a swuhbah by Shaykh Muhammad Nazhim Adil al-Haqqani (q.s.) on the 18thDecember
2009.

Whenever we
wish to draw closer to the Divine, we have to recite a'udzubillah so that Shaythan
is Removed from our presence, and the angels welcome such a servant of the
Lord. Man is Judged according to what he
has learnt in this worldly life. Allah (s.w.t.) will Question each and every one
of us Asking us what we have learnt throughout our lives. We are of different professions and we have
learnt skills and knowledge pertaining to our trade, hobbies, interests and
leisure. Others have learnt knowledge of
which they are too ashamed to speak of, in the Divine Presence, and yet others
have learnt what had expanded their egos and pleased their desires.

When the Lord
of the Heavens Asks, what we have learnt in our worldly existence, how many of
us will be able to answer, “O Allah, I tried to learn Your Divine Orders and
Commands.” How many would say they were
learning how to keep their egos from evil. How many can say they were learning how to
save themselves from Shaythan for the
devils cheat us of our rightful inheritance in akhirah. From the billions on earth today, only a
handful can answer as such. These are
the ones who tried to learn about the Rights of Allah (s.w.t.) and to fulfill them as best as they could.

Today, when
someone is asked Who Created him, he says his parents did. This is the sign of our ignorant times. Few Say their Lord Created them. When one realises that he is a Creation of
Allah, he must then ask the Divine Purpose of his Creation so that he can
fulfill that purpose. Today, Divine Wrath
approaches. Shaythan and his followers work hard to make this world secular, where
the name of Allah (s.w.t.) is not remembered
or honoured. The Divine hammer will Come
Down hard on Shaythan and his
helpers. We run to Allah (s.w.t.) because we are displeased with our
ego. Whoever is pleased with his ego is
displeased with Allah (s.w.t.). The first to rebel against the Command of
Allah (s.w.t.) is always our ego. It always takes a stand opposing what Allah (s.w.t.) has Commanded. That is why it is important to know what
Allah's (s.w.t.) Rights upon His
Servants are so that we can fulfill them and flee from our defiant egos.

Today, it is
difficult to find a person with a spiritually clean and bright face. Many are so dark and ugly by the deeds that
they do. The Prophet (s.a.w.) and the swahabah wore the same clothes most of the time; many did not have
more than even one set of clothing. Sometimes,
these clothes were worn until it was impossible to tell if these were white or
black clothes. Despite this, their
clothes had the most fragrant of smells, the fragrance of the rose, and their
bodies and mouths emanated a heavenly fragrance. Today, our bodies emit horrible odours and we
try to mask them with the copious use of perfumes. Why are our faces not lit with nur and why are our bodies and mouths
emitting bad odours? This is because we
have not learnt about Allah's (s.w.t.)
Rights and we have not done our best to fulfill these rights.

We must know
the purpose behind learning. We must
know what to learn and we must learn the purpose behind our Creation. We must follow the ways of the purified souls
and remember Allah (s.w.t.) always. Those who do not know and fulfill the rights
of their Lord will be Sent to Jahannam
in humiliation by Allah's (s.w.t.)
Wrath. Unfortunately, most Muslims are
chasing the knowledge of this world only, just like the unbelievers. They must repent and mend their ways. When Shaykh Nazhim (q.s.) was in seclusion in Madina, during an eclipse, he heard a
secret voice reciting istighfar in
one of the minarets of Masjid an-Nabawi. The Prophet (s.a.w.) repented seventy times daily. Even if we repented seventy million times
daily, it would not be enough but for Allah’s (s.w.t.) Mercy.